Marisa O. Ensor, PhD, LLM – I am a climate security specialist with a background in the socio-environmental dimensions of climate change, environmental extremes/disasters, insecurity, and displacement. Combining science (environmental anthropology) and rights-based approaches, my work examines intersectional, Indigenous, and local perspectives on culture-nature interactions.
I hold a PhD in Environmental Anthropology from the University of Florida, USA, a Master’s in Law in International and Human Rights Law from the University of Essex, UK, and a Graduate Certificate in Forced Migration Studies from the University of Oxford, UK.
I have complete fluency in English, Spanish, and French, and a beginner level of Arabic.
A central component of my most recent work are the critical linkages between bio-cultural heritage, cultural identity, traditional environmental knowledge (TEK), and community resilience in processes of climate adaptation and mitigation of crises.
I am currently based at Georgetown University’s (GU) Justice and Peace Studies Program. Additional GU appointments include a Senior Fellowship at the Georgetown Institute for the Study of International Migration (environmental displacement), a Senior Research Fellowship at Georgetown’s Collaborative on Global Children’s Issues (Indigenous Youth and the Intergenerational Transmission of Traditional Ecological Knowledge on Climate Change: Advancing Common Goals through Community-Based Participatory Research), and a Senior Climate Research Fellowship at the Georgetown Institute for Women Peace and Security (the Gender-Climate-Security Nexus). I am also a member of the Georgetown's Environmental Justice Commons.
Prior to joining GU, I taught at several other universities in the US and abroad, including the American University in Cairo’s Center for Migration and Refugee Studies, and the University of Tennessee’s Program of Disasters, Displacement, and Human Rights.
As an applied researcher and international consultant, I have lived and worked in over 25 environmentally fragile and conflict-affected countries of Africa, Asia, Europe, the MENA region, and Latin America. I have consulted with various UN agencies (UN Women, IOM, UNHCR, UNICEF, OHCHR), the Economic and Social Research Council, USAID, and the United States Institute of Peace. My research has resulted in numerous publications including five books, over 50 book chapters and journal articles, and dozens of technical and policy-oriented reports. Additionally, I am a frequent speaker at professional meetings, UN conferences such as COP, UN SIDS24, UN Ocean Decade Conference, and the Stockholm Water Week.
Academic Appointment(s)
- Primary
- Adjunct Lecturer, College - Justice and Peace Program